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Six Nations team of the tournament

1 Andrew Sheridan (England) – When he is allowed to scrum he is a formidable proposition. When England uses him on the charge he is the best loose head in the world. He was not at his very best this tournament but still the best loose head in this campaign.

2 Dmitri Szarzewski (France) - Occasionally errant at the line out but who was not? His rampant work in defence and attack is not far short of test match back row class. He has a long test career ahead of him.

3 Martin Castrogiavanni (Italy) – Immense yesterday to round up a fiercely competitive campaign. Technically he is as good as it gets; a man Nick Mallett can build a team around.

4 Nathan Hines (Scotland) – The solitary Scot from Perpignan in the team because he is not only outstanding at the line out but has a brilliant capacity to off load the ball and keep the rare Scottish movement alive. In a better team a lot of people would talk about this guy.

5 Alun Wyn Jones (Wales) – Getting better and better. “The modern forward” as Dick Best describes him, fast, good hands, makes the tackles. Did all of this and more throughout this competition.

6 Jonathon Thomas (Wales) – The Welsh blind side was the unspoken member of the acclaimed back row trinity. His athleticism at the line out and in the loose was a subtle part of the best back row in the competition.

7 Martyn Williams (Wales) – The greatest trick Warren Gatland ever pulled – to talk Martyn Williams out of retirement. Wales’ very own Pomerol, getting better with age; now for Schalk Burger and the ultimate physical test for an open side flanker.

8 Ryan Jones (Wales) – Or was that his greatest trick? The decision to appoint Jones  leader looks inspired, almost as inspired as Jones has had to be to hold off the challenge of Sergio Parisse for the Number Eight slot. Jones captains the team

9 Mike Phillips (Wales) – Until the weekend Mike Blair was my nine but the forceful performance of Phillips under pressure sways the day in the Ospreys favour. His power has been supplemented with much more technical nous at the base of the scrum. To think he will probably be on the bench when Ospreys face Saracens in the Heineken Cup.

10 Danny Cipriani (England) – One start was enough. It was Ronan O’ Gara going into the last round of fixtures but having played the Irishman into obscurity the sheer verve of his match makes him the ten of the tournament. Single handedly he made the English back line look like it knew what it was going. Miracles like that deserve recognition.

11 Shane Williams (Wales) – The all important try to give Wales the lead yesterday...but then again he always seems to be scoring all important tries. The finishing power flames as bright as ever whilst a new tightening of his defensive duties has turned him from a luxury item into one of the world’s best wingers.

12 Gavin Henson (Wales) – No longer a Welsh celebrity after this campaign, Henson is back to near his best with more to come. Excellent against France, his tackling has become as frequent as it has always been ferocious; the centre exudes class.

13 Tom Shanklin (Wales) – Dropped for the first match against England, the jolt did the trick. He came on and made an impact in that game and has grown game by game. The intelligence of his running and support lines is one of the features of the Welsh team.

14 Vincent Clerc (France) – It seems so long ago that the French back three were running rampant but Clerc did enough in Cardiff to remind us all of just what a marvellous player he has become. Thank the Lord for the Heineken Cup because we will be able to see him in Toulouse colours. Cardiff Blues, his quarter final opponents may not think the same.

15 Lee Byrne (Wales) – The most improved player in the tournament. Superb against England we commented on the excellence of that performance with some degree of surprise. Since then it was become a given. The official Man of the Match against Italy and commanding in the last two games Byrne has been rock solid throughout; JPR Williams for the 21st century without the sideburns but with a little bit more pace.

Player of the tournament – Shane Williams

Stuart Barnes's Six Nations verdict

Italy v Scotland

Italy received their just desserts with victory in Rome against Scotland. The appalling quality of the Calcutta Cup match was brought starkly into context as England’s conquerors succumbed to an inspired home pack. Had the Italians backs been anything other than we have known them to be for some seasons the margin of victory would have been vast and the failings of the Scottish team even more evident.

It has been a difficult season for Italy; had it not been for the moronic nature of England in Edinburgh it would have been a disastrous sporting one for Scotland. Take that solitary win out of the equation and there is little in the way of straw to clutch.

Certainly Scotland would love to have a pack with the technical ability of Italy’s. Once again the Italian front row were dominant and behind the other seven, Sergio Parisse’s status grew; he has reached the status of world class. He has been immense and his elevation to captaincy is a credit to the thought process of a former international Number Eight, now Italian coach, Nick Mallett.

Scotland has a bulky pack but not the ferocity and ability to make the weight count. It has a problem at fly half and a lack of penetration in the centre. In fact, the goal kicking of Chris Paterson apart it has very little; a pack row that can play, Nathan Hines and Mike Blair, the latter two both of whom had fine campaigns.

Italy has to find a pair of half backs; if it can discover a pair of gondoliers with a penchant for test match rugby they have the capacity to rise from the bottom of the Six Nations pile and quickly.

Man of the Match: Sergio Parisse – In was a second division test match but this was an elite performance by the Italian captain. An inspiration all season, his magnificent final eighty minutes drove Italy to the win their pack deserved.

England v Ireland

Danny Cipriani was not the official man of the match but this was HIS show. A new era may have dawned with the precocious Wasp at the helm. It was a debut of staggering proportions, one of the most memorable in living memory with the maturity of the performance more than any flash moments of skill standing out.

Had he played fly half against Wales and Scotland England would have won the Grand Slam. It makes the prevarication and conservatism of selection all the more galling for English supporters, still, better late than never.

The Wasps fly half brought the best out of Jamie Noon and used the pace and power of the back three to good effect but there were many remaining problems. The pack arm wrestled Ireland to exhaustion but refuse the option of quick ball. It is a culture that must change. If it does England will be a force.

The scenario is bleaker for Ireland. A decent twenty minutes apart, the men in green played with a lack of confidence and bravura. Even allowing for injury to Brian O’ Driscoll the side clearly appear to have lost their zest for the game under Eddie O’ Sullivan. Paul O’ Connell is nowhere near his peak which must concern Munster...but then again Munster and Ireland are two different teams.

Ronan O’ Gara faded but showed enough alongside Eoin Reddan to make Italy and Scotland green with envy while youngsters like Rob Kearney, Luke Fitzgerald and Tommy Bowe all are rich in talent. But to get the best from them Ireland has to rebuild in the front five with players like Tony Buckley now starting. Almost certainly the management needs rebuilding as well.

Man of the Match: Danny Cipriani – he ran the show, liberated the back line, kicked his goals without ever going anywhere near a ruck; the new age man is an old fashioned fly half with the rugby world at his fingertips.

Wales v France

And so to the final game of the campaign and the highlight of the season when the strongest  French team of the season failed to last eighty minutes with a Welsh team that defended for its Grand Slam before breaking out for glory. Shane and Martyn Williams score late tries, both of whom were inspired from the first to last in this tournament. But the defensive effort was the big differential between this and other Welsh teams. Wales can always attack but have long been loose in defence. Shaun Edwards has done a superb job both physically and psychologically. It has been a grand effort by management and team with Ryan Jones another Number Eight to have grown by the min ute with the responsibility of captaincy.

France has had a curious tournament. Until Saturday they have placed long term experimentation above results and maybe they have not quite achieved the right balance yet one suspects that Marc Lievremont and his selectors will not regard themselves as being far off course after the tournament. They have hard work to do to find the grunt in the front row but their back play is regathering momentum and youngsters like Francois Trinh Duc and Morgan Parra will have benefitted enormously.

Man of the Match: Martyn Williams – his organisational work in defence combined with his foraging attacking skills – beautifully emphasised by the try to seal the tournament. He will not be around forever but he has a huge role to if Wales are to build on a well deserved Grand Slam. Two Grand Slams in four years; it is time for French and English detractors to stop knocking Europe’s top team.

Six Nations team of the weekend

1 Allen Jacobsen – Strong in the scrum, bold in the loose; this was the Edinburgh prop’s finest international. He handled Phil Vickery with ease and was prominent with and without the ball in open play

2 Dmitri Szarsewski – He is far from the perfect thrower into the line out but the speed and skill of his running game is the very essence of the modern hooker. He runs and tackles with the courage and class of an international flanker. One day he may he mentioned with the great French hookers.

3 Adam Jones – Solid again in the scrum and gifted as ever in the loose. He has made a whole host of critics eat their words by the library-full; not quite sure about the hair but he was there in 2005 and as Wales take another step towards another Grand Slam he is right there again.

4 Nathan Hines – Harried England and a hard presence from first to last; he kept his discipline as well which is a major bonus. There is not a more skilled ball handler in the tight in this tournament and on Saturday he was a focus for his colleagues.

5 Alan Wyn Jones – Like the French hooker there is a great deal more to come from the young Welshman but this was another performance brim full of potential. He still needs the guiding, guarding presence of the underrated Ian Gough alongside him; with another year or so, he will step beyond the help of any lock and be regarded right up there with the best in the sport.

6 Josh Sole – The Italian back row forwards have had a fantastic tournament in adversity. Sergio Parisse had claimed most of the applause but the blind side has never been anything less than good and in Paris he stepped his performance level up to excellence with a furious determination at the contact and the loose.

7 Alastair Hogg – Out of favour earlier in the season, the return to form and the team of Hogg has added an edge that offsets the seeming decline in the potency of Jason White. He made a meal off Michael Lipman and set a standard which Simon Taylor followed as Scotland delivered their first convincing back row effort of the season.

8 Ryan Jones – He was simply magnificent. As a captain he eclipsed the forlorn Brian O’ Driscoll, as a Number Eight he played the very good Jamie Heaslip into a cocked hat. When Wales needed him he was there. His appointment as captain looks more like a Warren Gatland masterpiece with every passing day.

9 Mike Blair – Scotland are blessed with some very fine scrum halves but Blair, at his best, is a class apart. Technically superb against England, he read the game as if he wrote the book whilst his opposite numbers struggled with the basics of reading and writing. This was a  performance of imperious intelligence.

10 Francois Trinh Duc – A selection slightly by default as none of the other fly halves imposed themselves on the weekend. His diagonal chip for the Anthony Floch try was the highlight of a far more mature effort than the hot headed eighty minutes of mayhem against England. Here is a player who has already learned from being exposed to test rugby at an early stage.

11 Shane Williams – The bit part player to Mike Phillips in holding up the far bulkier opposite number, Shane Horgan on the Welsh line, he regained the spotlight with another delicious arcing break for glory and the try which sets Wales up for a Grand Slam. There is impish improvement with age as a winger makes a mighty bid for player of the tournament.

12 Graeme Morrison – Up and down all day long with none of the star dust sprinkled all over Williams, the inside centre was solidity itself for Scotland, producing what probably rates as the international effort of his career. The sight of the white shirt inspired him and helped him produce an inspirational performance for Scotland.

13 Tom Shanklin – His partnership with Gavin Henson outplayed their counterparts and his ability to read the defensive situation and make breaks when Wales needed them stamps him again as one of the best all round centres in the British Isles. The decision to omit him for the visit to England has restored his sharpness and with it, that of Wales

14 Aurelian Rougerie – The big bruising winger is a lovely counterpoint to the lighter Welshman on the other wing. There are many ways to skin a cat, his is to run over it and then do what he will with it. Fast, forceful and one of those men omitted from the French World Cup semi final fifteen which makes you wonder about Bernard Laporte.

15 Hugo Southwell – England kicked the ball into his hands and he took full advantage of their generosity to pin them back at every opportunity and, when the rare chance arose to ask a few questions on the counter attack. He was a reassuring and (another) intelligent presence on a difficult day when brains were required.

Stuart Barnes's Six Nations verdict

Scotland versus England

The beleaguered team against their powerful local rivals ends with the team of limited options prevailing in terms that its fans can justifiably describe as `heroic’. So it was for England in Paris a fortnight ago and so it proved for Scotland in Edinburgh. The home side played with a whole lot of heart but not that much imagination. They didn’t need it which is some indictment of an appalling England team who once again played with a complete absence of guile and vision. The time has come for England and Brian Ashton to take a few more risks and peer a little further over the horizon.

That is for next week and the future, for Scotland it a deserved if brief indulgence before Italy. Frank Hadden has issues in need of addressing and victory against England should not hide his side’s deficiencies any more than the win in Rome did England’s. The difference is that Scotland has fewer options – which is a main reason why Scotland should feel far more content with Saturday than England did in Paris. Nathan Hines controlled his temperament and produced a strong performance as did the entire back row which played with a zip and intelligence beyond England’s. Mike Blair was smarter than the whole England team; a reminder to an England team that is doing it (and doing it badly) by numbers that the thought process is an integral part of the sport.

Scotland simply must beat Italy to finish what remains a poor tournament in some style. They have only scored one try this season and beating the auld enemy is no more than a fig leaf if Italy beat them barren as a try scoring force.

England has a lot to do even before kick- off. Brian Ashton has to make wholesale changes and drop some big names. Whether he has the courage to omit Wilkinson or not may define the future of his tenure as England coach. The decision is that big.

Man of the Match: Mike Blair – Brains over brawn, while Mike Phillips is the man most critics are talking about, Blair remains the best scrum half in the British Isles. His winning combination of astute tactical thinking and body on the line bravery set the tone for Scotland.

Ireland versus Wales

Doubtless 2008, like 2005, will be written off as a bad year if Wales complete the Grand Slam against France next weekend. Yet the presence of eight of the cast of 2005 in the heart of the ranks which won in Dublin should be a salutary check on those who would dismiss. Two Grand Slams in four years is no mean achievement in any team’s book.

Saturday’s win may only have been by a narrow margin of four points but Wales were rich value for their win. Having withstood twenty tough opening minutes, the visitors took control of the game for the next forty minutes and thoroughly deserved their win. That the win was sealed by Shane Williams was an appropriate seal for a team successfully blending the old Welsh way with some bluff new coaching.

Not only does it have implications for next week but it may have an impact upon next summer and the Lions tour. Shaun Edwards has surely placed himself clear of the field as contender for coach whilst Ryan Jones got the better not only of Jamie Heaslip, his outstanding rival at Number Eight, but also Brian O’ Driscoll, who left the field in something close to despair. It has not been a good Six Nations for the favoured man to lead the Lions. After Saturday Jones must have emerged as the new bookmakers’ favourite for the captaincy.

Wales can return to Cardiff with a fine away win to their belt. Having won in both Dublin and London they have earned the right to be compared with their legendary peers of 1978. As for Ireland, their season is now in the balance. With two wins and two defeats, they are on the ledge. Victory against England will give them a season in credit, defeat with only Scotland and Italy conquered is a negative in the extreme.

Man of the Match: Ryan Jones – The captain injected some real vigour and aggression into his game while keeping the coolest of heads; an outstanding performance.

France versus Italy

It should come as no surprise that this was a far more controlled and cautious French beast than the one which has fluctuated between brilliance and madness. Marc Lievremont may have continued to dabble with relative unknowns from the lower parts of the French top fourteen but the presence of Dmitri Yachvili was a clue to the way France would play.

The Biarritz scrum half is not as quick as Morgan Parra over the ground, not as cunning as Jean Baptiste Elissalde but he has a fine brain and a left foot which tends to play substantial parts in matches in which he is involved. So it proved as France played a far more `traditional’ brand of Six Nations rugby with Yannick Jauzion another cementing influence in the midfield.

There were moments of magic such as the combined cross kick, tap down and score by Francois Trinh Duc, Julian Malzieu and Anthony Floch; Aurelian Rougerie was forceful as ever but this was more a re-establishment of the fundamentals before France face a sterner test in Cardiff. The title is winnable but Wales away will be a tough test for a side which is yet to unleash the eighty minutes sort of quality needed to beat a Welsh team with a nation behind them.

Having said that, France are in formative stage and will not feel anything like the pressure to win that Wales will; a French win cannot be ruled out although Wales are surely too good to take a hammering and throw the title away.

As for Italy, all the pressure is upon them after another typically solid and uninspired performance with stage fright again embarrassing expected big players like Gonzalo Canale. Until Nick Mallett can find a half back partnership with anything remotely like international class it will be no easy thing lifting themselves from the doldrums of this tournament. Scotland’s win is no proof however that Italy cannot turn the form book around next weekend. Scotland did win, yes, but they beat an awful team whereas Italy lost to a better side and have home advantage. The defeat in Paris makes the win important, not just for next weekend but the immediate future of a growing rugby nation that has been falling away after its excellent campaign in last season’s Six Nations.

Man of the Match: Aurelian Rougerie - a wonderful counterpoint to the sly speed and skills of Shane Williams from the previous day.  The Frenchman lacks subtlety but is mightily effective.

Stuart Barnes's Six Nations verdict

France versus England

I have a vision of Phil Vickery, strolling around Paris with his pocket book Henry Vth. There is just something about France in Paris which brings out the best in the England captain and his yeoman mates in the trench battles up front. He and Andrew Sheridan were outstanding in an England team that won because it needed to win more than France. Development is a fancy concept in England; in France it is all the rage. Marc Lievremont promised that France would maintain their high risk experimental style in terms of style of play and selection.

So he did Saturday and the first harsh lesson of his regime has been learned. France are capable of splendid attacking stuff but the forwards have to be harder edged and the backs have to be more judicious in their decision making. From the first kick off France ran from their twenty-two without ever playing the space in front of them; there was none as England closed them down but still they played expansively like it was a fundamental religion instead of a way to win a game of rugby.

They will be better than this and who knows, the naive nature of the effort might improve them and quickly. Most of the key lessons are learned in adversity and the home team confronted adversity face on.

England were, not surprisingly, more predictable but it was far from a traditional English performance. The forwards cleared out rucks rather than secure ball – and slow, unusable ball at that – for the scrum half. Richard Wigglesworth was sharp in mind and hand and comes out of the game with great credit.

Less obvious was the influence of Jonny Wilkinson who played a flatter more understated game throughout, giving up on his soft shoe shuffle step that causes such timing problems for his backs, and passing Jamie Noon and Toby Flood onto the gain line from set piece (with Flood playing that role when Wilkinson burrowed away in his beloved breakdown areas. It gave some momentum to the tempo of the team even if it was less than razor sharp. And this is what England can work on ahead of the Scotland game.

Some foundations were laid, not set in stone but significant enough to take the team’s development on and away from last autumn. The key for England is to be self critical and seek not just a win in Edinburgh but a performance. To do that Ashton needs to be tough. It is surely time to look at either Lee Mears or, bolder still, Dylan Hartley as a replacement for Mark Regan, while Iain Balshaw and Lesley Vainokolo could be `rested’ to allow England to explore other options. This match has enabled England to stride positively forward towards Edinburgh, whilst conversely, France need to add some traditional old fashioned forward beef to show they have learned from defeat. The return of Jean Baptiste Elissalde will make France much smarter than they were this weekend.

Man of the Match

Richard Wigglesworth played with such zip and confidence that a few members of the press forgot it was his first test match start. We expect miracles from newcomers as soon as they take the test field. The Sale man fell short of the miraculous but he was pretty damned good, given the circumstances.

Six Nations team of the weekend

1 Andrew Sheridan – He tortured Nicholas Mas in the scrums, surged around the park in much the same way as he did during the World Cup. One of the few Englishmen who would push (and make) a World XV

2 Dmitri Szarsewski- In a pack that was pummelled for large parts, his accuracy at the line out and his powerful running stood out. His angled run which led to the sole French try was a reminder of just what England are lacking from a modern mobile hooker.

3 Phil Vickery – Again Vickery loomed large in Paris. His leadership was calm in the build up to the game and inspirational off it. The presence of Matt Stevens on the bench has lifted his game. Brian Ashton’s decision to maintain him as captain looked sound enough yesterday.

4 Nathan Hines – He terrorised poor Bernard Jackman in the early line out phases and managed to keep Scotland on the front foot through most of the first half with the subtlety of his off loading game. Less subtle is his inability to keep a lid on his temper at key moments. One reversed penalty when Scotland was on the Ireland line will haunt Frank Hadden; still, at least he cares.

5 Lionel Nallet - His tactical skills were tested and found wanting but the heart was huge and along with Julian Bonnaire helped keep the English line out under pressure. Few home fans doubted that he deserved his try which will have been absolutely no compensation to this strong man.

6 Jonathon Thomas – Several surging runs and a tough battling performance on the floor and in the aerial battles ensured that the Ospreys back row forward maintained his high reputation as a fine foil to Martyn Williams.

7 David Wallace – His speed and strength has been a regular fixture of this Irish team for several years. Through the lean recent times he was always one of Ireland’s best and now that they are coming back, he remains influential as his try and hard running game indicated.

8 Jamie Heaslip – Eddie O’ Sullivan’s belated decision to select him after the sluggish performance against Italy is one of his better selection calls. He has added an injection of pace from the moment he took the field in Paris and was another handful as he rampaged around the field yesterday. Ryan Jones has a contender for the Lions Number Eight berth if both men stay fit.

9 Richard Wigglesworth – Scored a try but more importantly, kept his composure and a steady stream of quick accurate passes to his fly half. Defensively sound as well, the only question after Saturday was why did England wait to start him?

10 Ronan O’ Gara – The Irish attacking show revolved around their fly half. If O’ Gara is bad, Ireland are terrible, if he keeps the form he is in for another fortnight, Wales have a few problems on their hands if they are to win a Grand Slam.

11 Shane Williams – Love him or loathe him...oh what the hell, who can do anything but love him. If he stops turning over ball the man is going to be remembered as a great Welsh wing. Nobody makes a one on one situation look easier than Williams. The man is a national treasure.

12 Andrew Trimble – He picked some great running lines in attack and was a force in defence. Playing between O’ Gara and O’ Driscoll, the Ulster man looked anything but out of place. It may be heretical to suggest as much but Ireland looked better with him alongside their captain than with the injured and out of sorts Gordon D’Arcy.

13 Brian O’ Driscoll – Some way still from his world standard setting vintage but as aggressively excellent as ever in defence and his role in the Rob Kearney try was a delightful one. There is much more to come from one of the world’s best players who has been out of form for too long.

14 Tommy Bowe – Another beneficiary of O’ Gara and his midfield’s sharpness; a voracious appetite for work off his wing and clear proof that he has the power, pace and running lines to score a lot of test match tries.

15 Lee Byrne – The full back has blossomed into the most accomplished of performers. Confident, quick, strong with a boot that hurts as much as his well timed counter attacks, he must be the most improved player in Wales. The talent has always been present and now it is all coming together Wales have quite some full back.

Six Nations team of the weekend

1 Marcus Horan – To see the Irish pack dismantle France’s scrum as the game gathered in intensity was an unbelievable sight. To see a penalty try awarded (dubious in the extreme) earns Horan, hard around the park as ever, a place in this week’s team

2 Dmitri Szarsewski – France’s scrum against Scotland strengthened when he came off the bench; it collapsed when he departed after an aggressive and effective fifty minutes where his astounding fitness and attitude stood out

3 John Hayes – Massively maligned and maybe with some degree of justice in the past but he tackled his heart out and handled Nicholas Mas who was expected to tear into the Irish tight head side; it was surely one of finest games for Ireland.

4 Donncha O’ Callaghan – Even though Ireland struggled in the line out what little ball they won was often secured by him at the front of the line. Around the field he worked incessantly, shunting in the scrum, tackling and carrying in the loose and reminding everyone that Paul O’ Connell is not the only lock in Ireland.

5 Ian Evans – His line out work was as solid as ever but it was his ability to off load out of the tackle and prevent Scotland slowing the Welsh attacks down which caught the eye, in a subtle sort of way. A good player with a lot more to come

6 Thierry Dusautoir – Marc Lievremont is unafraid of making changes to the team and substitutions during a game but the capacity of the Toulouse flanker to cement his team in defence and gobble up any hint of loose ball on the floor marks him as central to the French team.

7 Martyn Williams – He may have struggled slightly at Twickenham but on the front foot in Cardiff he was back to his best. The combination of vision and execution has made him the peerless of this generation’s smaller flankers. John Barclay of Scotland is going to be a good one but Williams had too many tricks for him on the day.

8 Sergio Parisse – A major player in the defeat in Dublin he was simply monumental against England. Be it gathering line out ball, charging off the base, (with one adroit kick thrown in for good measure) or tackling his heart out, he lead from the front with control throughout; the outstanding player of the weekend.

9 Jean Baptiste Elissalde – He might throw an awful pass to his fly half in the first minute, under his posts, but so what? A quick shrug and its back to leading the French brains trust; he might not be the captain but he is the general. His vision and chip for Clerc’s first try was superb.

10 Jonny Wilkinson - Contrary to what his followers will claim did not answer all the questions. He disappeared for whatever reason as a presence in the second half but he looked the part on the front foot in the first half..and he has scored a lot of points.

11 Vincent Clerc – Two tries last week and three this week. The antidote to the Puritan work ethic with its insistence on grinding out wings; just give the man the ball.

12 Gavin Henson – He still fails to impose his will on the game but his quality of passing and running lines are pure class. He seems to be gently easing his way back towards the headlines;  Saturday’s understated excellence promises more.

13 Tom Shanklin – The partnership in the centre is a good one with Shanklin’s intelligent support runs and his huge work rate a decent balance. At times he worked beautifully with the Osprey 10 and 12 inside him.

14 Aurelien Rougerie – He marked a difficult kick in the opening salvo of the Irish game, metres from his line. Immediately he embarked on a sixty metre run which set the tempo that blew Ireland away in the first half. What I would give to see an English back play with such confidence..if he did he would probably not be picked.

15 Cedric Heymans – The conversion from winger to full back seems complete. He kicks like a mule, picks the best angles of any full back in Europe, gives his mate Clerc a try a game and pops up with a sprint for one of his own. Lee Byrne has improved immensely and had a fine start to this tournament but Heymans is leading the running for this particular verdict’s player of the tournament to date.

Stuart Barnes's Six Nations verdict

Wales v Scotland

Wales will be content with the result but not the quality of the performance. Considering the paucity of ambition from the Scotland camp it is a minor miracle Wales only failed to double the point tally of their bereft opposition. That minor miracle, from the Scottish perspective, is the kicking foot of Chris Paterson. Five infringements, fifteen points and some slight succour on the score board for a team who deserved nothing bar points from penalties.

Wales will be concerned with their failure to eliminate errors in their own half but with a fortnight until their next game and that game being Italy in Cardiff, the management has a right to feel pleased enough with Wales’s start.

Wales produced their own minor miracle themselves in the elfin shape of Shane Williams. In the perfect physical world of Shaun Edwards and Warren Gatland, he could become an endangered species but with the quality of finishing on display Saturday, he is in no hurry to be relegated to the history books. He has weaknesses but his strengths have always outweighed them and ever made him an exciting player to watch.

Scotland had no one to match him and no ambition to match a Welsh team that were fitful but looked the part on several occasions. James Hook is not yet the finished article and Gavin Henson is still flickering rather than exploding into life but that midfield, with its superb distribution skills is going to damage somebody badly before this tournament is out.

Gatland says Wales are two years from becoming a seriously good team but the immediate question is just how high – or should that read low – is the standard of opposition this season? In a sub standard tournament with France to come in Cardiff a championship is on the cards and a Grand Slam a possibility.

For Scotland the implications are deeper and graver. Frank Hadden’s team have become so obsessed with bulk that they have forgotten how much easier it is to beat a man in space rather than run through or over him. At times Wales taught him and his team a lesson. It is one that must be urgently heeded. This three man ruck a pop pass from a breakdown does nothing but take three attackers out of the equation at the cost of one tackler. It was an old and mindless English favourite. That has to be dropped as does the fly half, Dan Parks, if Scotland are to try and attack the try line.

Either Chris Paterson or Phil Godman has to be given the shirt and encouraged to play more aggressively, otherwise the three quarter line will be consigned continually to the role of spectator in attack and tackler in defence.

The key man was Shane Williams. He reminded Scotland what they lacked and the Welsh management that there remains an instinctive spark in Welsh back play that should not be snuffed out in the pursuit of pure power.

Six Nations team of the weekend

1 Andrew Sheridan - England collapsed in the final thirty minutes but Sheridan did not enough damage in the first fifty to have expected his team mates to have put Wales out of sight. It was a bad weekend for England but his reputation emerged unscathed.

2 William Servat – The French hooker was only on the field for 46 minutes but in that time his intelligent running angles and off loading skill played a major part as a fulcrum for the tight play of France. He helped build the platform for a convincing success, and, for a French hooker, he was accurate at the line out.

3 Phil Vickery – In hindsight his decisions to kick for the corner and seek a match winning try rather than choosing the more prosaic option of attempting to increase the lead via Jonny Wilkinson’s boot will be criticised but nobody in the ground – even the Welsh management – foresaw what was lying in wait around the corner. He was solid in the set piece and potent around the park.

4 Nathan Hines – Scotland’s better rugby in the first half frequently revolved around his skill in the off load. The Scottish line out unusually lost its bearings but Hines did enough to suggest that had he been wearing a blue shirt we would have been left to drool at his Perpignan honed ability.

5 Lionel Nallet – The French kids needed some comforting cajoling and the fresh captain of France delivered. Whether ripping balls from Scottish hands or kneeing the ball away from the try line and out of Chris Cusiter’s hands, he led by example and with no little intelligence. His appointment appears another savvy Lievremont move.

6 James Haskell – Hot blooded and conceded a few too many penalties but still by far England’s most impressive performer in the loose. His expected impact only makes one wonder at the decision of the management to omit him from the World Cup party. In some ways his inclusion here is bad viewing for English selectors.

7 Mauro Bergamasco – Big boned, passionate, brutal with the strength of a wrestler on the floor; the attributes that have made him one of the most intimidating sevens in Europe were again in abundance where he played a fine spoiling game.

8 Sergio Parisse – Another captain to make the team of the week and another sizeable step forward for the ever increasing reputation of the Italian captain; athletic and aggressive in the line out and plundering around in the loose, together with his open side he is a good reason not to take Italy lightly. Expect him to be even more inspired in Rome next Sunday.

9 Eoin Reddan – Whilst the rest of the Ireland went into some sort of Groundhog Day nightmare, seeing the autumn apathy all over again, the Wasps scrum half sparked them into a semblance of life and probably ended the debate about the best Ireland scrum half for good.

10 James Hook – Even when not at his best Hook oozes class, his goal kicking was a vital ingredient in the Wales win but so too his composure and the calmness with which he put Byrne away for the try to level the match. The touch line conversion of Mike Phillips try was not bad either.

11 Julien Malzieu – In truth he did not do that much but the confidence with which he marked a ball on his try line, in the corner of the ground and then proceeded to attempt to run through the entire Scotland team summed up the youthful ambition of France. A try on debut there will be more to come.

12 Gavin Henson – At last, the rugby reputation begins to put the celebrity headlines in the shade. His break in the lead up to the Byrne try was classic Henson with that insouciant step leaving the willing but beaten Wilkinson trailing. He became a focal point for Welsh ambition in the second half and looks likely to be, along with Hook, the catalyst for improvement in attack.

13 David Marty – Outside centres had a quiet weekend. Marty, a late inclusion for Florian Fritz was as ready to counter and seek space rather than the tackle as any other of his French colleagues. When defending had to be done, he did it without fuss in a solid work out.

14 Vincent Clerc – the best finisher in Europe and one of the best brains of any wide man in the game. He revealed his complete range yesterday with two slick tries and a bundle of power on and off his wing all afternoon. A wing receiving man of the match was a delightful man to round the weekend off.

15 Cedric Heymans – A close call with Lee Byrne, who probably played the game of his life Saturday but Heymans telepathic understanding with Clerc and his constant desire to attack space make him one of the most dazzling performers in the tournament. He was rock solid under the high ball and generally kicked well and judiciously.

Stuart Barnes's Six Nations verdict

ENGLAND v WALES

Brian Ashton can actually point to a decent half hour from England, one that would have sufficed to beat Italy but Wales found the mental edge the new management has promised and left the World Cup runners up looking the flaky lightweights in the top two inches. Wales won because England lost their drive and shape and because the balance of football skills was way short of the power displayed by the likes of the outstanding James Haskell and Andrew Sheridan. That was England’s problem and it opened a chink of light for a Welsh team which had been physically battered in the first half. Recent Welsh teams would have capitulated but this one hung in on the ropes and when England’s guard dropped had the speed of combinations which the English heavyweight lacked to knock out their opponents.

The bludgeon of the English game lacks the rapier that the Osprey back line brought to the second half. So much for the saying that forwards always wins matches. Not this one.

Ironically the result has left both managers under equal pressure. The rugby press and public should not buy the old peddled excuse that Italy away is a grade one win. Performance, with incision as well as bullying is required. It may require some brave selections. It promises to be as testing a week for Ashton as the one following that 36-0 defeat against the Springboks in the pool stage of the World Cup.

Warren Gatland shoulders the more welcoming pressure of immediate expectation. Having beaten England the nation will expect a thorough trouncing of Scotland. A defeat would be a considerable setback but if the management can manage national expectations towards the more realistic aspiration of any sort of win, it will have been quite some fortnight for the latest Kiwi coach of Wales

The Key man was James Hook. The fly half has produced more fluent performances, last year’s win against England was one, but the accuracy of his kicking to keep his team afloat when England threatened a deluge, coupled with his confidence to carry the game to England when the opportunity arose justified the glowing and growing reputation of this young man.